Domino Arts University
by Morbid Pancake
Summary: A day in the life of Ryou, student of the Domino Arts University. Ever wanted to know what kind of artist Bakura would be? Well read and you will find out. Slight Tender and Puzzleshipping. AU
1. Chapter 1

I have been wanting to write this for sometime and had some free time last night so, I wrote it. Enjoy and please review :)

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"And this, students, is my most famous piece to date." Professor Ishtar continued with a prideful smile.

"This work is a comment on society and how most view the body as an entirely sexual entity, instead of just seeing it for what it is, a person."

Ryou rolled his eyes, the fact that the sculpture was of Professor Ishtar himself undermined the entire piece. Honestly it made him seem a bit vain in his own opinion, although the piece was rather stunning. A life size bronze statue depicted Professor Ishtar in the pose of king, holding a small rod in his hands, his head looking towards the heavens with his chest fully exposed. Professor Ishtar usually used himself as a model, most of the time showing as much of his own body as possible. His main theme was body image and the view society has on it.

"Using myself as a model is the best way to communicate on how sexualization of the body is wrong, because my body is a work of art," he drawled on about his beauty. The class giggled - everyone knew Professor Ishtar was too vain for his own good, but he is an excellent artist, even if the work didn't resonate with Ryou personally.

"You shouldn't mock true beauty students, its hard to come by nowadays." He flicked his hair in an over-exaggerated expression and pouted, making the class erupt into laughter. At least he knew he was vain, Ryou thought through his own giggle. The class finally managed to calm down just in time for the lecture to wrap up.

"I want you all to research one sculpture and critique it, it will be due this time next week," Professor Ishtar yelled over the noisy teens. Ryou made a note in his book before leaving. He grabbed his bag and walked out of class - his next lecture was with one of the more controversial artists at the university, Professor Bakura. His works were interesting to say the least.

Professor Bakura's latest work was an installation, it features the severed heads of a pig, a cow and a zebra. Nobody really knew how he managed to get the zebra head, but there was a rumour that he had broken into the local zoo and decapitated one of the zebras in its enclosure. Ryou didn't put much faith into rumours, but Professor Bakura was a very intimidating man, and his main theme was the importance of the dead. As Ryou thought of Professor Bakura's art work, he had somehow managed to find his way to said teachers lecture room. Outside stood Yugi, who waved and ran towards Ryou when he spotted him.

"Hey, you looking forward to class?" Yugi said a frown on his face. Professor Bakura was Yugi's least favourite teacher – something about him being "creepy, scary and partially insane", he had told Ryou.

"Of course, he is one of the best lecturers at this university." Ryou smiled, he did truly enjoy Professor Bakura's work. Yugi frowned again.

"Yeah, but he is scary beyond reason, and his works always stink up the class room," he flailed his arms to express his discomfort.

"Wellllllll... Professor Atem is our last lecture for the day." Ryou saw Yugi perk up instantly, the young boy had the biggest crush on Professor Atem. Ryou saw Yugi's sketch book in his hands, even though it was a small size, the sketch book looked big in comparison to Yugi's petite hands.

"May I have a look at your sketch book?" Ryou asked. Yugi nodded and handed the book over to Ryou. As he flipped through the book his eyes grew bigger with surprise.

"Wow, you have really improved Yugi, these monsters are far more detailed then the ones you were drawing at the beginning of the year. Its almost like they're jumping off the page," Ryou laughed. Yugi blushed.

"I don't know, nothing I draw feels any good to me." Yugi looked down at his feet, Ryou knew Yugi lacked confidence - they both did really, but Ryou knew good art when he saw it.

Ryou continued " If you keep improving like this, you will get that job at Industrial Illusions easily!"

"You really think so?" Yugi blushed again, looking to the side as he did.

Just as Ryou was about to continue, the bell rang. Both boys turned pale, they were going to be late to Professor Bakura's class. They ran to the door but the damage was done, the whole class was sat down and the professor had already started. His back was turned, so the boys tried to sneak into the class unnoticed. Tiptoeing to their seats, both had almost sat down, when the Professor whipped his head around and threw two chalkboard erasers at the young men. The erasers hit the boys right in the middle of their faces. Ryou fell over and Yugi coughed, trying to breath through the dust cloud.

"Would you two like to explain why you're late, and trying to sneak into my class?" It was spoken softly, but the anger rang clear through the professors voice.

Yugi stood there pale as a ghost. Ryou decided he'd have to be the brave one, so he stood up and dusted himself off. "We were, um, at the toilets?" Ryou was a horrible liar, and he knew it too. The professor looked utterly impassive.

"Just sit down and shut up" He sighed.

Ryou thanked whatever gods were watching out for him, and both boys proceeded to their seats. Both sat down and shared a sheepish grin with each other.

"As. I. Was. Saying. Damien Hirst uses his theme of death to shock and provoke his audience," Professor Bakura continued his lecture. Ryou got out his note pad and started scribbling down the notes. Ryou loved art about death - because of his obsession with the occult, death was a subject that he was extremely interested in. While the class was busy writing down the notes, the professor flipped through a slide show of Hirst's art pieces. A skull covered in diamonds, a shark in a tank of formaldehyde, and many more. Ryou could hear Yugi gag when the picture of 'Mother and Child Divided' flicked onto the screen. Two cows, one fully grown and the other just a calf, had been cut in half and split into two tanks filled with formaldehyde. Ryou giggled at the title, while Yugi stared, his face green.

"This is my favourite of his pieces," Professor Bakura stated. "The work is truly a masterpiece for installation art, and the title is quite humorous." Ryou couldn't agree more. Sometimes he felt that Professor Bakura knew him better then most others, even Yugi, his closest friend. He would always stay and ask questions after class, and the Professor always seemed happy to answer, although it was hard to tell.

Ryou got a bit lost in thought at this point thinking about Yugi's improvements in drawing, wondering if he had improved at all. Ryou was a painter, who, like Professor Bakura, focused on death as his main theme. He knew why he was partial towards death as a subject - his sister Amane, it made him feel closer to her. He knew it was odd, but supposed it was his way to cope with her death, and she did always love his paintings. His Vanitas paintings were his personal favourite, he loved painting skulls, candles and rotting fruits.

"And that, class, concludes today's lesson. Ryou, Yugi, stay where you are, the rest of you are free to go." Ryou could almost hear Yugi's dread, it was very funny how much he feared the Professor. Ryou let out a giggle.

"Is something funny Ryou?" Ryou looked up to see the source of Yugi's dread, standing with his arms crossed in front of his desk. Ryou gulped. Yes, very intimidating indeed.

"No sir," he said

"Good. You two know I don't tolerate tardiness, next time you two go to 'the toilet', I suggest you don't spend the time after chatting right in front of my class." Ryou and Yugi felt a bit ashamed, but it could be worse, he could have used their heads in his next installation.

"Is that understood?"

"Yes Sir," both boys replied quickly

"Good, you two are excused." He turned around and proceeded to his desk while Ryou and Yugi counted their blessings and walked out of class as fast as they could.

"That was lucky!" Yugi said "Last time I was late he made me clean up the classroom, maybe it was because his favourite was with me." Yugi elbowed Ryou and he blushed.

"I wouldn't say favourite, I just like to make an extra effort in his class, that's all," Ryou replied, although his cheeks were tinted with red.

They both walked silently to Professor Atem's class. Ryou did like Professor Atem, but mostly because he was a painter and gave good tips whilst lecturing. Professor Atem painted mostly foreign scenes that he had visited over the years, he was in particularly interested in painting Egypt and depicted the Pyramids when they were still young. Professor Atem was a kind man with a deep voice that made the girls swoon – oh, and Yugi too. Walking inside, the two boys took their seats and awaited the arrival of the professor. He strode into the room while Yugi looked on like a love sick puppy. Ryou rolled his eyes, but supposed no harm could come of it. Professor Atem's lecture was rather boring today, but you wouldn't think so by the way Yugi's eyes were glued to the man. The lecture ended rather suddenly, and Ryou left while Yugi stayed to talk to the Professor.

Walking through the campus, Ryou was considering his options for the assignment that Professor Ishtar had set for them. He needed to do some research. He remembered a sculpture he had found interesting, but couldn't remember the name. Whilst pondering these thoughts, he didn't watch where he was going and walked straight into something, and for the second time that day he fell over. Then he noticed that the something was a someone, and not just any someone - Professor Bakura. Oh dear.

"This is the second time today you have inconvenienced me, not very stable on those feet of yours are you Ryou?" He stated with a small grin of superiority. Ryou blushed and took the hand the Professor offered him, back onto his feet Ryou looked up at the Professor.

"Sorry sir, I have been rather troublesome for you today, haven't I?" Ryou laughed he never could understand how he felt so comfortable around this man.

"Well, at least you know when you're being a pain," he stated bluntly, but Ryou didn't take any offense. The Professor went to walk away, but before he did he went up to Ryou and whispered.

"Just to let you know, you are my favourite." Then he winked and left.

Ryou was left standing there, another blush speeding across his cheeks. Yes, Professor Bakura was definitely his favourite.

As Ryou walked away, he noticed that the Professor was heading in the direction of the zoo.


	2. Chapter 2

Here is the new chapter, not going to promise constant updates but will try my best.

thank you SilentGreenThief for your Beta services :P

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BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Ryou lifted his head. Feeling groggy from sleep, he attempted to stop the alarm clock by throwing his arm in the direction of the device, but instead of hitting the alarm he managed to miss it and threw himself out of bed. Landing flat on his face, Ryou moaned in pain, but mostly annoyance. Reaching up, he managed to turn the alarm off. Now lying on the floor, he waited a couple of minutes before finally managing to muster the energy to stand and get changed. Walking over to his closet, he opened the door. Looking for something suitable, he shuffled through some of the clothes, seeing the long black coat he wore for Halloween. Behind it he found his trusty white and blue striped top and light blue jeans. He grabbed the articles of clothing and slipped them on.

Yawning, he made his way through his small one bedroom flat to the kitchen. The tiles of the kitchen were cold against his feet and sent a small chill through his body. He opened the draw and grabbed a spoon, placing it into his mouth. Moving to the cupboard door, Ryou grabbed a box of cereal and a bowl, he placed them down onto the small one person table adjoining the kitchen. He then proceeded to grab some milk out of the fridge. Taking a small whiff of the milk, he deemed it edible and poured it into his bowl. Finally sitting down, he added the cereal, and grabbing the spoon out of his mouth he dug into to his morning meal.

Being awake enough to actually think, Ryou pondered his schedule for the day.

"Lets see," he spoke quietly to himself, "today is Thursday, so I only have Professor Bakuras class."

He smiled to himself, thinking about what he could do with his free time today. Maybe painting? No, that was more of a weekend thing and he didn't feel like cleaning up messy oil paint after he was done. He could hang out with Yugi - no wait, he had another class with professor Atem and all he would do afterwards is go on about how good the professors lecture was or how handsome he looked today. NO THANK YOU! Ryou loved Yugi but was not in the mood for that kind of social interaction. He opted to leave his decision for later.

Polishing off his cereal, he placed the bowl in the sink and grabbed his phone and books. Walking back through the kitchen to the front door, he placed his books and phone on the ground and put his shoes on. Picking his books and phone up and slipping the phone into his pocket, he grasped the key that was on the hook next to the door. Turning the handle he opened the door, then closed and locked it and started walking to the university.

It was only a short walk to the school, five minutes at the most, so it was never much of a chore for Ryou. In fact, he quite enjoyed it. It was peaceful, a calming walk through the beautiful city of Domino. It was a beautiful day, the sun hung lazily in the sky and only a few small clouds dotting the horizon. Ryou rather liked Domino city. Although it was small, it had its own charms. The city square was where all the gamers hung out at, and was also the location of gaming stores, including a store for Ryous favourite game Monster World.

When he thought about it, the only reason he was painting now was because of monster world. As a result of those small figurines that you had to paint, Ryou discovered a natural talent. He can remember the first time he had painted one, man it had looked awful! The colours were all odd and the face looked like something out of a nightmare. He smiled at the thought. But, he had persevered and found that with practice he was actually fairly skilled. It was what lead him to start painting on canvas and eventually apply to Domino Arts University.

Ryou had arrived to the university while on his trip through memory lane. He grabbed his phone out of his pocket to check the time. 10:00am, he still had a half of an hour until his next class, so he headed to the quad to sit down to relax until then. Finding a nice shady spot under a tree he sat down amoungst the grass, it was soft to the touch and was the perfect resting place.

Although he loved the sun, he had learnt his lesson from several sunburns that his pale skin tone didn't do well with long exposure to that bright orb. Sitting under a tree was the closest he could get to sitting out in the sun. While watching time go by, he saw two people walk across the quad. Mai and Otogi were both heading away from the painting rooms. Not surprising, as they were both models for the painters, probably the favourite models in the entire university. They spotted Ryou and headed towards him. Ryou waved and stood up.

"Hey Mai, hey Otogi, hows it going?" Ryou asked with genuine curiosity.

Otogi replied first. "Pretty good, though somebody got a new tattoo." Otogi nudged Mai and she scowled.

"Yeah, so what if I did, doesnt bother me if other people see it!" She sniggered.

Ryou smiled, obviously it was another nude portrait session.

"Well Mai, next time you get a tattoo maybe you shouldn't get it on your left cheek," Otogi chided.

Ryou looked at Mai's left cheek in confusion. There was no tattoo on... Oh. He meant that kind of cheek. Ryou blushed, his face turning a bright shade of red quite like a tomato.

Otogi smiled. "Sorry, couldn't help myself. Anyway, I have to go, see ya."

Mai waved him off with a rather profane gesture.

She then turned to face Ryou. "Anyway, how are you Ryou? I haven't seen you for awhile and I miss taking to you hon."

"Oh, I've been fine," Ryou replied.

"Really? Most people start to flip out around graduation time," she joked.

"Well, I cant say I have been thinking about it much, but I probably should be."

Mai smiled. "Well have you thought about what you're going to do when you graduate?"

Ryou placed his hand on his chin. He had been offered a job as a junior curator at the Domino city museum art department (only because his father was often doing business with them) but still wasn't one hundred percent sure on what he wanted to do.

"Yeah, I was offered a job as a junior curator at the Domino city museum arts department, but I'm still not sure if I want to do it."

Mai clapped her hands together. "Well its a great start! Just make sure when your famous to credit your favorite model," she teased with a pointed finger.

Ryou laughed. "How could I ever possibly forget?" They both shared a chuckle this time.

"It was nice taking to you hon, but I have a thing at a place, I'll see you later." She blew a kiss and was off.

Ryou checked his phone. 10:20am, time to head to class. He sauntered to his class with little urgency, when he arrived he waited outside the door for Yugi. He didn't have to wait long before he saw the familiar wild colours of Yugis hair. Ryou waved and waited until Yugi reached him, then both walked into class together.

"On time today, hmmm?" Professor Bakura stated.

Yugi put his head down while Ryou opted for a reply.

"Yes sir," Ryou smiled.

The Professor snorted and went back to typing on his computer. Both boys made their way to their seats, sitting down, Ryou shared a smile with Yugi, and Yugi returned his kindness.

During the lecture Ryou found himself thinking about his future, he was thinking about all the things he had wanted to do and the job offer he had recieved. None of the options seemed very inviting. He suddenly became aware of the reason he had been putting off the decision - because it made him worry. Maybe he could ask the Professor for his advice. That thought helped, but didn't ease his anxiousness.

The lecture felt rather quick and was over before Ryou had time to blink, how long had he been thinking for? Well, now he could ask the Professor. Excusing himself from Yugis company, Ryou waited for the class to leave before approaching the professor.

"What can I do for you?" Ryou received a rare smile from the professor. Slightly thrown off by the smile, Ryou uneasily asked his question.

"Well, I'm actually looking for some advice, I'm not sure what to do after I graduate, and was hoping for some ideas." Ryou looked at his feet, not proud of his lack of planning.

"Leaving it a bit late, are we not?" The Professor replied with his trademark smirk. More comfortable with this expression, Ryou looked up at the Professor.

Professor Bakura placed his hands under his chin. "Well, there is something I have been saving for a certain student."

He then proceeded to grab a piece of paper out of one of his draws before handing it to Ryou. Ryou looked it over, and then looked it over again, not sure if he believed what he was reading.

"A job for a painter at Kul Elna studios?" Ryou was in shock. Professor Bakura had just offered Ryou a job at his very own studio. Looking up to the professor and down at the paper a few times, Ryou finally managed to speak.

"I, um, thank you sir." Ryou was still in lala land from the surprise.

The Professor chuckled. "Your Vanitas paintings would be perfect for my studio, my last painter and I had a ... disagreement. I never saw him after that."

"Sir, I would be honored to work at your studio." Ryou couldn't help but smile, this was more then he could have ever have hoped for.

"Good, I was going to tell you after your graduation but there's no time like the present. I will give you more details later, but for now I have to get going."

Thanking the professor again, Ryou bowed and left. He decided to go to Yugis to tell him the good news.

Ryou looked up at the sky, today was a very beautiful day.


	3. Chapter 3

Hey guys! Here is the next chapter, its a bit short but I didn't want to risk f**king it up. I promise a nice long chapter next, for now read, review and (hopefully) enjoy :)

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Ryou sat in front of a blank canvas, frustration etched deep into his face. Of all the times he could have had absolutely no idea what to paint. No ideas no nothing, not even the slightest idea what to paint.

"Honestly this never happens!" He said, exasperated with himself.

He was rapidly tapping his knee with his paint brush, making himself more frustrated as the time went on. Still staring at the blank white thing in front of him, blank, blank, blank and more bloody blank!

The canvas stood there white as Ryou's own hair - looking at the canvas just added to Ryou's annoyance. It was almost as if the canvas was mocking him by being completely devoid of colour, devoid of purpose. Staring into the blank canvas intently didn't make the situation any better.

He stood, and began pacing around. Professor Bakura had asked him to paint something to exhibit in his gallery. At first, Ryou had been ecstatic. Although his works had been in a few galleries before, none were as prestigious then Kul Elna studios. Still walking, he mumbled around his small kitchen. He had not really considered the possibility of disappointing the professor, but now it was all he could think about.

Ryou had never really considered inspiration as a key to painting – sure, there were times where he felt like painting and times where he didn't, but you couldn't always have your way. He was getting more frustrated every second that the canvas remained blank. A string of curses left his mouth, making him stop in his tracks. Ryou was by no means stuck up but he didn't like swearing, so he took a moment to take a deep breath.

This was getting him nowhere. He laid down his paint brush and walked to his computer - ten minutes on the internet might give him time to cool down. He plopped down on the floor and reached for the button. Ryou drummed his fingers on his knees, impatiently waiting for the screen to flicker to life. When the screen finally decided to turn on, he breathed a sigh of relief. Placing his hand gently on the mouse he moved the cursor to the small fox icon and double clicked. Google's logo sat on the screen, but once again Ryou had no idea what to type.

Before he proceeded to flip the table, he placed his hand on his chin thoughtfully. He couldn't help but think about the painting he was supposed to be doing, so with nothing else coming to mind he simply searched Kul Elna studios. Expecting to see the studio website as the first result, Ryou found himself mildly surprised when a travel website was in its place. Driven by mild curiosity, he clicked the link. Ryou read through the page, getting more excited as he did so. Apparently, there was a myth behind a small village in Egypt - and the villages name was Kul Elna.

There was once an evil man who sought an ancient magic, and to obtain it he sacrificed the lives of all the men, women and children in the village of Kul Elna. But there was one who survived, a small boy. This boy grew to become a powerful thief, and that thief made a deal with the darkness itself. The man sold his soul to take revenge against the diabolical man who murdered his entire village. The thief bore a red coat stained with the blood of those who dared to challenge him. Although it is not known if the thief succeeded in his quest, it is believed that he still walks the earth as a spirit, causing havoc to the power hungry of the world.

Ryou stared at the screen, absorbing the information. This was perfect, absolutely utterly perfect! Ryou now knew what he would paint. Running over to the kitchen, he sat down and got started. In a mad frenzy he gripped his tubes of paint and began mixing colours - browns, yellows, reds, anything that flew into his mind. His eyes were wild with excitement as he dipped his brush into the paint and put the first mark on the white canvas. He continued painting, his brush strokes becoming more erratic as time went on. He had to make this one of his best paintings yet. His arms appeared to be flying through the air, hitting the canvas with layer after layer of paint. Colours began to merge and the as the painting began to take shape, he stopped for a breath to actually take in what he had done. Ryou could honestly say this was possibly one of his best works yet.

Although it was nowhere near compete, Ryou grabbed his thinnest paint brush to add the fine details. Ryou had decided to paint the thief from the legend. He wore a bloody red coat and was surrounded by skeletons of the villagers he sought to avenge. Ryou began to paint the thief's hair. He had thought that white would be the right colour for such a ghostly figure, but it became apparent that pure white didn't suit the thief's dark skin colour. Ryou stood in thought and decided to add some black to his hair, it turned out that making his hair gray was a good choice. It suited the tone of the painting and made the thief appear exotic.

Adding the final touches, Ryou stood back from his painting to take it in, but a frown appeared on his face.

"Something's still missing," he thought aloud.

Then something occurred to him, this figure was a thief right? So why not give him some plunder? Looking around the kitchen bench, he found his gold paint, thrust his brush into the mug of dirtied paint water, and dried it on his pants. He gave the thief some golden bangles, bracelets and a gold chain around his neck.

Finally, it was finished. Ryou looked at it with a prideful smile, this would surely be a great addition to the Kul Elna gallery.

He decided he should tidy up his mess. Grabbing the cup of dirty paint water, he was about to make a short journey to the sink, but being as clumsy as he was, he tripped. In the few seconds between falling to the ground, he found himself thinking about what he had tripped on.

Thud! Ryou landed on his tiled floor, and after a few seconds of regaining his composure, he wondered where all the water had gone... And then he noticed something dripping off the canvas.

"Bugger!" Ryou said as he raised his body to rescue his work. "Bugger Bugger Bugger Bugger Bugger!" He repeated, while trying to frantically dry the canvas with his t-shirt. His hand were sopping wet after the clean up and his painting t-shirt was far dirtier then it had ever been.

Luckily the damage was not severe, but the thief's shadow had mixed with the water and become distorted. It looked as though the darkness from his shadow was taking on its own form entirely. Deciding it was a nice addition, Ryou kept the little accident on his canvas.

Cleaning up again, this time more carefully, Ryou washed his paint brushes and threw his shirt into the clothes bin. Walking around topless, Ryou placed the canvas to the side of his kitchen and looked at the time. 10.40pm... How long had he been painting? He wasn't hungry, so he decided to call it a night.

Turning off the lights, he went to bed. Taking off the remainder of his clothing, Ryou slipped under the covers and fell into a pleasant sleep.

His dreams were of the thief clad in red, but instead of the face he had envisioned, he only saw the face of Professor Bakura. He grinned and turned, striding off into the horizon as the desert sands consumed him whole.

When Ryou woke up the next morning, he wondered just why the professor had called his studio the name of a cursed village. Then again, who knew, maybe the Professor was possessed by the red thief's spirit. Ryou giggled to himself.

As if things like that ever actually happened.


	4. Chapter 4

Ryou walked into professor Atem's class, his alarm hadn't gone off because of a power cut that had also made all the food in his fridge go off. The fact he had to lug around a canvas didn't help with his sour mood. Just as he entered the class he saw Yugi run out, he didn't even seem to notice Ryou when he ran by him. Ryou gave a worried look - why was Yugi running away from his favourite class? Just as Yugi went out of sight, Professor Atem ran out with an equally concerned face. He looked around frantically and saw Ryou looking at him in a complete daze.

"Ryou? Where did Yugi go?" He asked in a wary tone.

"I don't know, he didn't even see me when he took off out of the class." Ryou looked around. "Why did he go running out of class? Did something happen?"

Professor Atem furrowed his brows.

"Well yes and no, I saw that he had his portfolio with him, and asked him if I could see it." He looked down. "I saw that he didn't want me to look, but he didn't try to stop me. Just as I was about to open it, he yanked it out of my hands and ran out of the class."

"Oh." Ryou knew Yugi was anxious about his portfolio, but he didn't think it had gotten that bad.

Atem looked frustrated. "I shouldn't have taken it! I saw he was uncomfortable but I didn't care!" He growled. Ryou jumped. Professor Atem never growls, ever.

Atem sighed. " Can you go find him, to see if he's okay, please."

"Of course sir," Ryou replied, "I will come and find you when I have found him."

Ryou took off in the direction of Yugi, hopefully he hadn't gotten far, after all he couldn't have gone too far with those short legs of his.

Running through the quad, Ryou looked around, trying to think where the spiky haired teen went. Maybe he went to their usual hang out under the tree. Running over, Ryou spotted Yugi under the tree, covered in shadow with his knees drawn under his head. Ryou sighed and walked over, Yugi didn't even look up when Ryou sat next to him.

He could hear Yugi's ragged breathing, and he sighed again.

"Soooooooo, what you up to?" Ryou wasn't the best at starting conversations. Yugi knew this, but just shook his head.

"Don't really want to talk?" Ryou asked gently, Yugi shrugged. Ryou looked around, trying to think of something to say to cheer up his friend.

"You know, Professor Atem was worried about you. He even asked me to come and find you." Yugi sniffled a bit and looked up.

"Really?" Yugi croaked.

"Yeah, he seemed really worried about you, he even got mad at himself for upsetting you."

Yugi couldn't help but smile, this made Ryou a bit more comfortable, he knew how to deal with a happy Yugi.

"I told him I'd come and make sure you were OK. Are you?"

Yugi looked down again, the smile falling off his face. He didn't answer.

Ryou frowned. "Its about your portfolio isn't it?"

Yugi looked away and mumbled something Ryou couldn't hear.

"Yugi, I can't hear you," Ryou said as kindly as he could.

This time Yugi looked at Ryou. "Its not good enough," he whispered just loud enough for Yugi to hear.

Ryou looked down at his hands, not sure what to say.

"Yugi, you know your work is good." Ryou paused "You're just nervous about sending it in for the job at industrial illusions aren't you?"

"YES!" Yugi yelled. "I am! What if I don't get it? Everything I have been studying would have been for nothing! What if they reject me?" Yugi was blinking rapidly trying to stop himself from crying.

Ryou sat there and waited for Yugi to calm down, trying to think of the right words to comfort his friend, but coming up with nothing.

"Yugi, I uhmmm..." Ryou stuttered, trying to come up with something comforting.

Yugi looked at Ryou. "I'm sorry, this isn't your problem, I just don't know what to do."

Ryou looked at Yugi and smiled.

Yugi continued " I'm so anxious about it, every time I think about sending it in I feel sick." He let out a jagged breath.

"I don't know if I can send it, I don't think I have the courage." He chuckled, but it was full of sorrow and pity.

"Can I look at the folio?" Ryou asked.

Yugi nodded, and handed a parcel to Ryou.

"You put it into the mailing bag while you were sitting here?"

"Yes, I thought I could mail it after I ran out the class, but I couldn't."

Ryou had a devious idea. "Well then," Ryou stood up with the parcel in hand. Yugi looked up, confused. "Guess I will have to mail it for you."

Then Ryou took off, confident that Yugi couldn't catch up. It was a straight shoot to the postage box and Ryou made it there in no time. He threw it in, just as Yugi's lithe body ran into his.

"Ryou, wh-why, what the hell?" Yugi was breathing hard, and hitting against Ryou with his fists.

"Now you just have to worry about getting in," Ryou replied with a small guilty smile.

Yugi didn't look impressed, but also had a look of relief on his face.

"I suppose you're right," he huffed.

They both stood there for a few minutes in silence, neither saying anything.

After a while Yugi spoke. "Thanks Ryou."

Ryou smiled and took Yugi's hand.

"We better let professor Atem know that you're okay." Yugi nodded then blushed, obviously embarrassed by the way he had acted.

Both boys walked together making light conversation, until they reached the class room.

"Do you want me to come in with you?" Ryou asked.

Yugi shook his head. "I will be fine, you go, I have my other class after this anyway."

Ryou smiled and walked off. Glad that Yugi was better, he headed towards professor Bakura's class – he had to drop this painting off. Now Ryou realized just how nervous he was, all day he had been too busy thinking about Yugi rather then himself. His pace slowed a bit, getting more nervous with each step. Guess he and Yugi were rather similar. All too soon, Ryou had made it to the professors class. He fiddled with the door knob, trying to stall. Growing tired, he opened the door. He was greeted with sight of Professor Bakura talking on a phone.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT WAS PROBABLY MY FAULT? OF COURSE IT WAS, YOU MORON!" He yelled to the person on the other side of the phone. He then looked over, saw Ryou, and grinned.

"Sorry, but I have something more important to do. Call me back when you have a solution for the problem." Pressing the disconnect button with unneeded force, he threw the phone onto his desk and walked over to Ryou.

"Ryou, you've got the painting I see." The professor quirked a brow. Ryou looked a bit pale - well, paler.

"Yes sir, I suppose you would like to see it?" Ryou cringed internally, of course he wanted to see it! What a stupid question.

The professor simply nodded, and Ryou handed him the canvas. Bakura took it out of the cover, looking at it intensely. Ryou stood awkwardly trying not to have a miniature heart attack. There was a silence, then the professor grinned.

"I see you have been doing some research then?"

Ryou nodded.

"This is very different from your usual Vanitas paintings." Ryou paled even more.

"Though..." He paused. "Different doesn't mean bad, I'm very impressed Ryou, this was far more than I expected."

Even though it sounded like an insult Ryou took it as a compliment, a smile gracing his fine features.

"I was inspired by the myth about the village of Kul Elna." The professor nodded in approval. "Sir, why did you name your studio after a cursed village? If you don't mind me asking."

The professor hummed, drumming his finger on the canvas.

"Well you know that I have always had and obsession with death, although I cant say I know why. A few years ago I went to Egypt on a vacation to visit family and to see the sights, and I was at a bar where an old man with a missing eye was telling stories about Kul Elna. Even though he was clearly drunk, I was intrigued. I asked the old man if he knew where this supposed cursed village was, he did, so I travelled there. Once there, I felt barren and empty like the dilapidated houses around me. There was nothing but death and sorrow, so naturally, I loved the small cursed village."

Ryou nodded, extremely interested.

"So when I finally built my own studio, I wished the name to reflect my love of death, and Kul Elna Studios sounded oh so beautiful." The professor held a complacent smirk on his face.

Ryou had no words, he knew the professor loved the theme of death, but never really knew to what extent.

"Anyway," Bakura interrupted Ryou's thoughts. "That's enough reminiscing, I have a class - and you, I assume, also have one."

Ryou looked at the time. 1:45. He was going to be late for the second time today.

"Oh right, thank you sir," Ryou bowed.

The professor simply smirked and waved him off. Ryou left the class room, happy with today's events, then annoyed being late to Professor Ishtar's class. Not how he wanted to end the day, but then again, at least he wasn't late to Professor Bakura's class.


End file.
